Melitzanosalata is a traditional Greek eggplant dip made with roasted or chargrilled eggplants, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar and parsley. It’s easy to prepare and belongs to a staple of Greek recipes or Greek dishes known as “mezze” (small plates) in Greek.
Place eggplants on a lined baking sheet and roast in a preheated oven (180 deg C - 350 F) for 1 hour.
Once the eggplants are cooked, allow them to cool on the baking tray for half an hour.
Very gently peel the skin and place the eggplant flesh in a colander to drain for half an hour.
Place the eggplant flesh, garlic, breadcrumbs, olive oil, salt, pepper and parsley in a food processor and blend until smooth.
Serve the melitzanosalata immediately or refrigerate for a few hours and serve later.
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Notes
Broil or grill your eggplants. If you don’t have a gas stove and prefer a more pronounced smoky eggplant flavour, you can broil your eggplants instead. (This process should take approximately 20 minutes). Place your eggplants on a baking tray and place them under a hot broiler. Cook until the skin on the whole eggplant is blistered (be sure to turn periodically to get all sides).Use a fork instead of a food processor. If you prefer not to use a food processor, place all the ingredients for the melitzanosalata in a medium bowl and mash roughly with a fork. Just be sure to finely chop your garlic in advance. The texture will be a little more on the chunky side but still equally delicious.Add roasted peppers. If you want to make this delicious eggplant dip, “next level” fold through a small chargrilled red pepper once it has been blended or mashed. It adds an extra smoky hit and a delicious flavour.